Vermont Study 1920

Rockwell Kent brushed ‘Vermont Study’ with oil on canvas, and the earth and sky respond in kind. I imagine Kent, standing before the scene with his materials, trying to capture the essence of the place. See how the paint is laid on in distinct strokes, building up the form of the mountain like a topographical map? I feel like I am walking in his footsteps. The blue sky is almost flat, but it vibrates against the warm, layered brushstrokes of the mountain that dominates the picture plane. And that dark shadow is so evocative! It makes you think about the time of day, the season, and the way the light is hitting the landscape. Kent’s work always returns to certain themes of nature, isolation, and the sublime, which echo through earlier artists like Caspar David Friedrich. He’s a node in a network, a painter in dialogue with other painters across time.